Presidential Talent Tournament – June

May 23, 2012

Only one president was born in the month of June and, as talented as George H.W. Bush might be, it wouldn’t be fair for him to run unopposed! In the interest of sportsmanship, we’ve borrowed a President from a busier month, so get ready to meet your contenders!

The 41st President, George H.W. Bush, has a long list of talents to choose from. At age 18, he became the youngest naval aviator of his time and would go on to complete a bombing run while his plane’s engine was on fire! He followed that achievement by enrolling in Yale and graduating in just 2½ years. He was a skilled sportsman, serving as varsity captain of both his soccer and baseball teams. In baseball, he played in the very first two College World Series games—Yale was the runner-up both years, and they haven’t placed since then.

Our surprise contender, borrowed in advance from November, is James Garfield. You might not be as familiar with him, but he brings a lot to the table. For example, he was the first ambidextrous president, and (purportedly) could write in Latin with one hand and Greek with the other, simultaneously. He was also a juggler, but just for the exercise! For fun, he wrote geometric proofs. Garfield was not very talented at campaigning for other people, however—in 1880 he campaigned for John Sherman as the presidential nominee, and accidentally won it himself. Oops! And did we mention that the metal detector was invented specifically to try and save his life?

Who will continue to the next round of the tournament? Will it be Bush or will it be Garfield? The decision is yours! Vote now on Facebook or Twitter!